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IN THE CORRIDORS

While the Plenary began its discussion of some of the bracketed text in the Convention, numerous consultations were underway within regional groups and in the smoky corridors of UNESCO on some of the more contentious issues. Bolong Sonko and Pierre-Marc Johnson are continuing their consultations on financial resources and mechanisms. The OECD countries discussed finance in their evening meeting and the G-77 is expected to discuss the matter Tuesday morning. Discussions on categories of countries, institutions and principles are also ongoing on a bilateral and group-to-group basis. Since many of the most productive negotiations do not always occur in the large conference rooms, operational optimists believe it is likely that these consultations will result in the compromises necessary to ensure successful adoption of the Convention.